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Factors Associated with Inadequate Management of Antiplatelet Agents in Perioperative Period of Non-Cardiac Surgeries

Abstract

Background:

The current guidelines dispose recommendations to manage antiplatelet agents in the perioperative period; however, the daily medical practices lack standardization.

Objectives:

To asses factors associated with inadequate management of antiplatelet agents in the perioperative period of non-cardiac surgeries.

Methods:

Cross-sectional Study conducted in hospital from October 2014 to October 2016. The study dependent variable was a therapy that did not comply with the recommendations in the Brazilian Association of Cardiology (SBC) guidelines. The independent variables included some characteristics, the people in charge of the management and causes of lack of adherence to those guidelines. Variables were included in the multivariate model. Analysis was based on the odds ratio (OR) value and its respective 95% confidence interval (CI) estimated by means of logistic regression with 5% significance level.

Results:

The sample was composed of adult patients submitted to non-cardiac surgeries and who would use acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin) or clopidogrel (n = 161). The management failed to comply with the recommendations in the guidelines in 80.75% of the sample. Surgeons had the highest number of noncomplying orientations (n = 63). After multivariate analysis it was observed that patients with a higher level of schooling (OR = 0.24; CI95% 0.07-0.78) and those with a previous episode of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) (OR = 0.18; CI95% 0.04-0.95) had a higher probability of using a therapy complying with the guidelines.

Conclusion:

Positive association between patients’ schooling level, or those with a history of previous AMI, with management of the use of aspirin and clopidogrel in the perioperative period of non-cardiac surgeries. However, diverging conducts stress the need of having internal protocol defined.

Keywords:
Surgery/perioperative care; Intraoperative Care; Platelet Aggregation; Adults; Myocardial Infarction; Educational Status

Resumo

Fundamento:

As diretrizes atuais apresentam recomendações para o manejo de antiagregantes plaquetários em perioperatório, entretanto, na prática clínica diária há falta de padronização das condutas médicas.

Objetivos:

Avaliar os fatores associados ao manejo inadequado de antiagregantes plaquetários em perioperatório de cirurgias não cardíacas.

Métodos:

Estudo transversal, realizado de outubro de 2014 a outubro de 2016, em hospital. A variável dependente do estudo foi a terapia divergente das recomendações das diretrizes da Sociedade Brasileira de Cardiologia (SBC). As variáveis independentes incluíram algumas características, os responsáveis pelo manejo e as causas de não adesão às diretrizes. As variáveis foram incluídas no modelo multivariado. A análise se baseou no valor de oddsratio (OR) e seu respectivo intervalo de confiança (IC) de 95%, estimados por regressão logística com um nível de significância de 5%.

Resultados:

A amostra foi composta de pacientes adultos submetidos a cirurgias não cardíacas e que faziam uso de ácido acetilsalicílico (AAS) ou clopidogrel (n = 161). O manejo esteve em desacordo com aquele preconizado pelas diretrizes em 80,75% da amostra. Os cirurgiões realizaram o maior número (n = 63) de orientações em desacordo. Após a análise multivariada, observou-se que os pacientes com nível de escolaridade superior (OR = 0,24; IC95% 0,07-0,78) e aqueles com episódio prévio de infarto agudo do miocárdio (IAM) (OR = 0,18; IC95% 0,04-0,95) possuem maior chance de utilizar a terapia em concordância com as recomendações.

Conclusão:

Associação positiva entre o nível de escolaridade dos pacientes ou histórico prévio de IAM com o manejo do uso de AAS e clopidogrel em perioperatório de cirurgias não cardíacas. Porém as divergências nas condutas reforçam a necessidade de definição de protocolos internos.

Palavras-chave:
Cirurgia/assistência perioperatória; Cuidados Intraoperatórios; Agregação Plaquetária; Adultos; Infarto do Miocárdio; Escolaridade

Introduction

A study published in 20018 by the World Health Organization (WHO) informed that in 2012 313 million surgeries had been performed worldwide, thus evidencing a 38% increase in eight years. During that period in Brazil approximately 6 thousand surgeries per 100.000 inhabitants were performed, summing up about 10 to 13 million surgical procedures in 2012,11 Weiser TG, Haynes AB, Molina G, Lipsitz SR, Esquivel MM, Uribe-Leitz T, et al. Size and distribution of the global volume of surgery in 2012. Bull World Health Organ. 2016;94(3):201-9F. and the rate of non-cardiac surgeries was estimated at 3 million per year.22 Yu PC, Calderaro D, Gualandro DM, Marques AC, Pastana AF, Prandini JC, et al. Non-cardiac surgery in developing countries: epidemiological aspects and economical opportunities--the case of Brazil. PLoS One. 2010;5(5):e10607. These figures still are bound to increase due to several factors, such as the growing and ageing population.33 Weiser TG, Regenbogen SE, Thompson KD, Haynes AB, Lipsitz SR, Berry WR, et al. An estimation of the global volume of surgery: a modelling strategy based on available data. Lancet. 2008;372(9633):139-44.

In 2014, Botto et al.,44 Botto F, Alonso-Coello P, Chan MT, Villar JC, Xavier D, Srinathan S, et al. Myocardial injury after noncardiac surgery: a large, international, prospective cohort study establishing diagnostic criteria, characteristics, predictors, and 30-day outcomes. Anesthesiology. 2014;120(3):564-78. stated that cardiac complications are the main cause of post-operation deaths of patients submitted to non-cardiac surgeries. These are alarming data once in the world over 10 million adults every year have at least one cardiac complication in the first 30 days following a non-cardiac surgical procedure.44 Botto F, Alonso-Coello P, Chan MT, Villar JC, Xavier D, Srinathan S, et al. Myocardial injury after noncardiac surgery: a large, international, prospective cohort study establishing diagnostic criteria, characteristics, predictors, and 30-day outcomes. Anesthesiology. 2014;120(3):564-78.,55 Kristensen SD, Knuuti J, Saraste A, Anker S, Batker HE, De Hert S, et al. [2014 ESC/ESA Guidelines on non-cardiac surgery: cardiovascular assessment andmanagement]. Kardiol Pol. 2014;72(11):857-918. Among the cardiac complications arising from these types of procedure the most common is acute myocardial infarction (AMI),44 Botto F, Alonso-Coello P, Chan MT, Villar JC, Xavier D, Srinathan S, et al. Myocardial injury after noncardiac surgery: a large, international, prospective cohort study establishing diagnostic criteria, characteristics, predictors, and 30-day outcomes. Anesthesiology. 2014;120(3):564-78.,66 Devereaux PJ, Chan MT, Alonso-Coello P, Walsh M, Berwanger O, Villar JC, et al; Vascular Events In Noncardiac Surgery Patients Cohort Evaluation (VISION) Study Investigators. Association between postoperative troponin levels and 30-day mortality among patients undergoing noncardiac surgery. JAMA. 2012;307(21):2295-304. Erratum in: JAMA. 2012;307(24):2590.,77 Devereaux PJ, Xavier D, Pogue J, Guyatt G, Sigamani A, Garutti I, et al; POISE (PeriOperative ISchemic Evaluation) Investigators. Characteristics and short-term prognosis of perioperative myocardial infarction in patients undergoing noncardiac surgery: a cohort study. Ann Intern Med. 2011;154(8):523-8. which is also associated with long-term mortality, although often enough it is detected earlier during clinical screening.88 Puelacher C, Lurati Buse G, Seeberger D, Sazgary L, Marbot S, Lampart A, et al; BASEL-PMI Investigators. Perioperative myocardial injury after noncardiac surgery: incidence, mortality, and characterization. Circulation. 2018;137(12):1221-32.

Due to the key role performed by platelets in pathogenesis of atherothrombotic events, using antiplatelet agents is of the essence for primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular events.99 Silva MV, Dusse LM, Vieira LM, Carvalho Md. Platelet antiaggregants in primary and secondary prevention of atherothrombotic events. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2013;100(6):e78-84. However, although the use of antiplatelet agents has increased cardiovascular safety of many patients,1010 Yusuf S, Zhao F, Mehta SR, Chrolavicius S, Tognoni G, Fox KK, et al; Clopidogrel in Unstable Angina to Prevent Recurrent Events Trial Investigators. Effects of clopidogrel in addition to aspirin in patients with acute coronary syndromes without ST-segment elevation. N Engl J Med. 2001;345(7):494-502. Erratum in: N Engl J Med. 2001;345(20):1506; N Engl J Med. 2001;345(23):1716. when they need a non-cardiac surgery, surgeons and anesthesiologists frequently have to face the decision of whether to interrupt or not antiplatelet therapy in those patients during the perioperative period considering the risks of the occurrence of thrombi or bleedings, respectively.1111 Columbo JA, Lambour AJ, Sundling RA, Chauhan NB, Bessen SY, Linshaw DL, et al. A meta-analysis of the impact of aspirin, clopidogrel, and dual antiplatelet therapy on bleeding complications in noncardiac surgery. Ann Surg. 2018;267(1):1-10.

12 Eikelboom JW, Hirsh J, Spencer FA, Baglin TP, Weitz JI. Antiplatelet drugs: antithrombotic therapy and prevention of thrombosis, 9th ed: American College of Chest Physicians Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines. Chest. 2012;141(2 Suppl):e89S-e119S.
-1313 Baigent C, Blackwell L, Collins R, Emberson J, Godwin J, Peto R, et al; Antithrombotic Trialists’ (ATT) Collaboration. Aspirin in the primary and secondary prevention of vascular disease: collaborative meta-analysis of individual participant data from randomised trials. Lancet. 2009;373(9678):1849-60.

Thus, in order to help physicians make decisions in the perioperative period referring to antiplatelet therapy, the recommendations of the American association of thorax physicians (2012) and of the Brazilian (2013), European and American cardiology societies of cardiology (2014) are supposed to serve as basis of clinical evidence to help perioperative conducts and, consequently, to guarantee more safety to patients.55 Kristensen SD, Knuuti J, Saraste A, Anker S, Batker HE, De Hert S, et al. [2014 ESC/ESA Guidelines on non-cardiac surgery: cardiovascular assessment andmanagement]. Kardiol Pol. 2014;72(11):857-918.,1414 Fleisher LA, Fleischmann KE, Auerbach AD, Barnason SA, Beckman JA, Bozkurt B, et al; American College of Cardiology; American Heart Association. 2014 ACC/AHA guideline on perioperative cardiovascular evaluation and management of patients undergoing noncardiac surgery: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on practice guidelines. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2014;64(22):e77-137.

15 Lorga Filho AM, Azmus AD, Soeiro AM, Quadros AS, Avezum Junior A, Marques AC, et al. [Brazilian guidelines on platelet antiaggregants and anticoagulants in cardiology]. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2013;101(3 Suppl 3):1-93.
-1616 Douketis JD, Spyropoulos AC, Spencer FA, Mayr M, Jaffer AK, Eckman MH, et al. Perioperative management of antithrombotic therapy: Antithrombotic Therapy and Prevention of Thrombosis, 9th ed: American College of Chest Physicians Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines. Chest. 2012;141(2 Suppl):e326S-e50S.

In this sense, this study is an attempt to assess the factors associated with inadequate management of antiplatelet agents in the perioperative period of non-cardiac surgeries based on the existing Brazilian guidelines.

Methods

Study outline, sample and data collection

This is a cross-sectional study conducted in a high-complexity hospital, which is reference in cardiology and has internal hospital accreditation. That hospital unit contains 150 beds and, during the study period, 650 non-cardiac surgeries per month were performed on average.

In the study patients submitted to non-cardiac surgeries and who previously and regularly used at least one platelet agent for primary or secondary prevention were included, which composed a sample obtained by convenience instead of probabilistic, composed of adult patients (18 years old or older).

Data were collected from October 2014 to October 2016 by means of interviews with patients, or with their companions, before they were submitted to surgical procedures, using a questionnaire specific to obtain data. The interviews were held by a team of professionals and academics previously trained who attended the Departments of Pharmacy and Medicine of a public university and the Department of Pharmacy of a private university.

Variables and data analysis

Descriptive analysis of the variables was done by determining absolute and relative frequencies for qualitative variables, and the means for quantitative variables. In the univariate and multivariate analyses the preoperative therapy with aspirin or clopidogrel was defined the dependent variable, which is inadequate according to the SBC recommendations (yes or no), once the study was conducted in Brazil. For this variable firstly was determined whether the patients had used antiplatelet agent for primary and secondary prevention, and then whether the recommendations disposed in the SBC guidelines referring to antiplatelet agents and anticoagulants in cardiology had been met, those adopted by the institution as reference at the time of the study, as presented in Box 1.

Box 01
SBC recommendation (2013) as to using aspirin and clopidogrel in the preoperative period of non-cardiac surgery

Independent variables are described in Table 1. Patients were deemed to have a history of revascularization procedure if they had already been submitted to percutaneous coronary intervention or surgical revascularization. Patients were deemed dyslipidemic when they used medicines such as statins, resins, ezetimibe or fibrates, which the V Brazilian Guideline of Dyslipidemia and Atherosclerosis Prevention (2013) deems treatments of choice for dyslipidemia,1717 Xavier HT, Izar MC, Faria Neto JR, Assad MH, Rocha VZ, Sposito AC, et al. Sociedade Brasileira de Cardiologia. [V Brazilian Guidelines on Dyslipidemias and Prevention of Atherosclerosis]. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2013;101(4 Suppl 1):1-20. additionally, patients were deemed hypertensive when at their medical records there was this information and because they used anti-hypertensive medicines, as described in the 7th Brazilian Guideline of Arterial Hypertension (2016).1818 Malaquias MV, Souza WK, Plavnik FL, Rodrigues CI, Brandão AA, Neves MF, et al; Sociedade Brasileira de Cardiologia. 7ª diretriz brasileira de hipertensão arterial. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2016;107(3Supl.3):1-83. For the Body Mass Index (BMI), patients who had 18.5- 24.9 Kg/m2 BMI1919 World Health Organization. (WHO). Obesity: preventing and managing the global epidemic. Report of a WHO Consultation. (Technical Report Series 894). were considered having normal weight. As to a surgery’ intrinsic risk of cardiac complications, the 3rd SBC Guideline of Perioperative Cardiovascular Assessment2020 Gualandro DM, Yu PC, Caramelli B, Marques AC, Calderaro D, Fornari LS, et al. 3rd Guideline for Perioperative Cardiovascular Evaluation of the Brazilian Society of Cardiology. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2017;109(3 Suppl 1):1-104. was adopted as reference2020 Gualandro DM, Yu PC, Caramelli B, Marques AC, Calderaro D, Fornari LS, et al. 3rd Guideline for Perioperative Cardiovascular Evaluation of the Brazilian Society of Cardiology. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2017;109(3 Suppl 1):1-104..

Table 1
Sample characteristics (n = 161). High-complexity hospital, Aracaju, Sergipe, Brazil, 2014-2016

We conducted univariate analyses using the Pearson chi-square test or Fisher exact test with expected frequency equal or lower than five. All variables were included in the multivariate model which, on its turn, was done with logistic regression. Multivariate analysis was based on the odds ratio (OR) value and its respective 95% confidence interval (CI95%), estimated by logistic regression. A 5% level of statistical significance was the criterion adopted to identify characteristics independently associated with the dependent variable. The likelihood-ratio test was used to compare the models, and the final models’ properness was assessed with the Hosmer-Lemeshow test. All statistical analyses were done with the Stata® statistic software package, version 12.

Ethical aspects

This investigation was registered in the National Council of Ethics in Research - CONEP with the Certificate of Submission for Ethical Appreciation - CAAE no. 33899914.2.0000.5546, in compliance with the norms for scientific research involving human beings in Brazil. All individuals included in the study agreed to participate in the research by signing a free and informed consent (FIC).

Results

Out of the total number of patients interviewed (n = 1,200), 161 were included in this study because they reported using at least one antiplatelet agent: Aspirin (156) and clopidogrel (5). Among those, 48 used antiplatelet agent for primary prevention (29.8%) and 113 for secondary prevention (70.2%). The patients were 69.5 years old on average (minimum = 42; maximum = 99; SD = ±10.5) and the majority was female (54.7%), in addition to having an average AMI of 27.8 kg/m2 (minimum = 17.3; maximum = 46.3; SD = ±5.5) and number of diseases 1.8 on average (minimum = 0; maximum = 4; SD = ±0.9). The majority had schooling up to high-school (40.4%) and the mean time of daily use of aspirin and/or Clopidogrel was 6.3 years (minimum = 1; maximum = 40; SD = ±6.8). Table 1 shows the characteristics of the sample in detail:

Out of the whole sample, 80.7% of the sample failed to comply with the SBC cardiology guidelines. As to types of noncomplying therapies, most of them occurred in cases where platelet agents was suspended as recommended, but within a longer period of time to that recommended in the guidelines, as detailed in Table 2.

Table 2
Results of noncompliance with the SBC recommendations for using aspirin and clopidogrel in preoperative periods of non-cardiac surgeries (n = 161) in high-complexity Hospital, Aracaju, Sergipe, Brazil, 2014-2016

As to the people in charge of rendering orientation for the management of antiplatelet agents, 85.1 % of the surgeons who rendered instructions to patients, in addition to 63.2% of the cardiologists, did it in disagreement with the recommendations in the SBC guidelines as to the use of aspirin or clopidogrel in the preoperative period of non-cardiac surgeries. As to the cardiac risks in surgical procedures to which the patients were submitted, according to the SBC2020 Gualandro DM, Yu PC, Caramelli B, Marques AC, Calderaro D, Fornari LS, et al. 3rd Guideline for Perioperative Cardiovascular Evaluation of the Brazilian Society of Cardiology. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2017;109(3 Suppl 1):1-104. guidelines for perioperative cardiovascular assessment, the majority (58%) of the procedures was classified as low cardiac risk (<1%), and none was classified high risk in this study.

Table 3 presents the results of multivariate analyses of the characteristics associated to the therapy lacking compliance with the recommendations for using aspirin or clopidogrel in preoperative period according to the SBC. After multiple adjustments, schooling up to university, complete or incomplete (OR 0.24; CI95% 0.7-0.78), and previous history of AMI (OR 0.18: CI95% 0.04-0.95) remained independently associated with the therapy lacking compliance with the SBC. .

Table 3
Results of the multivariate analysis of the characteristics associated with the therapy lacking compliance with the recommendations of use of aspirin or clopidogrel in preoperative periods according to SBC (n = 161) in high-complexity Hospital, Aracaju, Sergipe, Brazil, 2014-2016

Discussion

The rather expressive frequency of therapies with aspirin and clopidogrel lacking compliance with the SBC guidelines’ recommendations (2013) in the perioperative period of non-cardiac surgeries was not observed in other studies once, as far as we are aware, this is the first one conducted in Brazil on this subject. However, the lack of organization of standardization of medical conducts in the management of antiplatelet agents is well known, i.e., there are groups of physicians who advocate the suspension of those medicines before surgeries in order to avoid bleedings, while others advocate their maintenance in order to avoid thrombotic events.1111 Columbo JA, Lambour AJ, Sundling RA, Chauhan NB, Bessen SY, Linshaw DL, et al. A meta-analysis of the impact of aspirin, clopidogrel, and dual antiplatelet therapy on bleeding complications in noncardiac surgery. Ann Surg. 2018;267(1):1-10.

12 Eikelboom JW, Hirsh J, Spencer FA, Baglin TP, Weitz JI. Antiplatelet drugs: antithrombotic therapy and prevention of thrombosis, 9th ed: American College of Chest Physicians Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guidelines. Chest. 2012;141(2 Suppl):e89S-e119S.
-1313 Baigent C, Blackwell L, Collins R, Emberson J, Godwin J, Peto R, et al; Antithrombotic Trialists’ (ATT) Collaboration. Aspirin in the primary and secondary prevention of vascular disease: collaborative meta-analysis of individual participant data from randomised trials. Lancet. 2009;373(9678):1849-60.,2121 Joseph B, Rawashdeh B, Aziz H, Kulvatunyou N, Pandit V, Jehangir Q, et al. An acute care surgery dilemma: emergent laparoscopic cholecystectomy in patients on aspirin therapy. Am J Surg. 2015;209(4):689-94.

22 Devereaux PJ, Mrkobrada M, Sessler DI, Leslie K, Alonso-Coello P, Kurz A, et al; POISE-2 Investigators. Aspirin in patients undergoing noncardiac surgery. N Engl J Med. 2014;370(16):1494-503.

23 Wolf AM, Pucci MJ, Gabale SD, McIntyre CA, Irizarry AM, Kennedy EP, et al. Safety of perioperative aspirin therapy in pancreatic operations. Surgery. 2014:155(1):39-46.
-2424 Oscarsson A, Gupta A, Fredrikson M, Jrhult J, Nystrm M, Pettersson E, et al. To continue or discontinue aspirin in the perioperative period: a randomized, controlled clinical trial. Br J Anaesth. 2010;104(3):305-12.

The Brazilian guidelines say that in cases where aspirin or clopidogrel is used for primary prevention of cardiovascular diseases, they should be suspended, respectively seven and five days before a non-cardiac surgical procedure. However, in this study, the majority of the noncompliance with the Brazilian guidelines happened due to their suspension for periods longer than those disposed for aspirin and clopidogrel. This conduct can potentially expose patients to cardiac complications in the perioperative period once the literature evidences that those medicines, after being suspended for 8-10 days, lose their antiplatelet agent’s effect.2525 Ozao-Choy J, Tammaro Y, Fradis M, Weber K, Divino CM. Clopidogrel and bleeding after general surgery procedures. Am Surg. 2008;74(8):721-5.,2626 Patrono C, Coller B, FitzGerald GA, Hirsh J, Roth G. Platelet-active drugs: the relationships among dose, effectiveness, and side effects: the Seventh ACCP Conference on Antithrombotic and Thrombolytic Therapy. Chest. 2004;126(3 Suppl):234S-64S. Cases where the conduct of suspending the drug was correct were also observed, but for a period shorter than that recommended in the guidelines and, so, the goal of losing the pharmacological effect of the antiplatelet agent is never reached once that effect at platelet level is irreversible, and the time they remain active is approximately 10 days.2626 Patrono C, Coller B, FitzGerald GA, Hirsh J, Roth G. Platelet-active drugs: the relationships among dose, effectiveness, and side effects: the Seventh ACCP Conference on Antithrombotic and Thrombolytic Therapy. Chest. 2004;126(3 Suppl):234S-64S.

Therefore, although the conduct of suspending the antiplatelet agent was correct, it is possible to infer that the suspension of the antiplatelet agent for longer or shorter periods than those recommended by the guidelines occurred because the hospital does not have its own assistance protocols focused on this matter, and, as such, diverging conducts strengthen the need of defining internal conducts, more divulgation of the guidelines used as reference at that institution, and continued education. Double checking conducts according to internal protocols of an institution can also be an important choice to ensure patients’ safety.

Other important datum in this study, and one that draws attention, is that a significant number of noncomplying therapies occurred resulting from having patients oriented to suspend antiplatelet agents when the Brazilian guidelines state the opposite for cases where patients use aspirin and clopidogrel for secondary prevention of cardiovascular diseases,2424 Oscarsson A, Gupta A, Fredrikson M, Jrhult J, Nystrm M, Pettersson E, et al. To continue or discontinue aspirin in the perioperative period: a randomized, controlled clinical trial. Br J Anaesth. 2010;104(3):305-12.,2727 Burger W, Chemnitius JM, Kneissl GD, Rocker G. Low-dose aspirin for secondary cardiovascular prevention - cardiovascular risks after its perioperative withdrawal versus bleeding risks with its continuation - review and meta-analysis. J Intern Med. 2005;257(5):399-414. except for clopidogrel, which depends of the procedure’s bleeding risk;2828 Collyer TC, Reynolds HC, Truyens E, Kilshaw L, Corcoran T. Perioperative management of clopidogrel therapy: the effects on in-hospital cardiac morbidity in older patients with hip fractures. Br J Anaesth. 2011;107(6):911-5. but in this case, all 5 patients who had been using this drug were submitted to low bleeding-risk surgeries. According to some authors, an increased bleeding risk related to the effect of the antiplatelet action of those drugs is well known,2929 Bollati M, Gaita F, Anselmino M. Antiplatelet combinations for prevention of atherothrombotic events. Vasc Health Risk Manag. 2011;7 Jan 12:23-30.,3030 Mehta SR, Tanguay JF, Eikelboom JW, Jolly SS, Joyner CD, Granger CB, et al; CURRENT-OASIS 7 trial investigators. Double-dose versus standard-dose clopidogrel and high-dose versus low-dose aspirin in individuals undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention for acute coronary syndromes (CURRENT-OASIS 7): a randomised factorial trial. Lancet. 2010;376(9748):1233-43. mainly in the ageing population,3131 Li L, Geraghty OC, Mehta Z, Rothwell PM, Study OV. Age-specific risks, severity, time course, and outcome of bleeding on long-term antiplatelet treatment after vascular events: a population-based cohort study. Lancet. 2017;390(10093):490-9. which stands for the majority in this study.

However, other studies, as much as the SBC orientations (2013), except for neurosurgeries and transurethral resection of the prostate, advocate that the benefits of secondary prevention substantially exceeds the bleeding risks those drugs may cause1313 Baigent C, Blackwell L, Collins R, Emberson J, Godwin J, Peto R, et al; Antithrombotic Trialists’ (ATT) Collaboration. Aspirin in the primary and secondary prevention of vascular disease: collaborative meta-analysis of individual participant data from randomised trials. Lancet. 2009;373(9678):1849-60.,2424 Oscarsson A, Gupta A, Fredrikson M, Jrhult J, Nystrm M, Pettersson E, et al. To continue or discontinue aspirin in the perioperative period: a randomized, controlled clinical trial. Br J Anaesth. 2010;104(3):305-12.,2727 Burger W, Chemnitius JM, Kneissl GD, Rocker G. Low-dose aspirin for secondary cardiovascular prevention - cardiovascular risks after its perioperative withdrawal versus bleeding risks with its continuation - review and meta-analysis. J Intern Med. 2005;257(5):399-414. once the AMI is the main cause of death in old patients after non-cardiac surgeries.3232 Olivetti G, Melissari M, Capasso JM, Anversa P. Cardiomyopaty of the aging human heart: myocyte loss and reactive cellular hypertrophy. Cir Res.1991;68(6):1560-8.

A successful surgery depends on the aptitude and technical skills of the surgeon, on the indication and previous preparation, on the perioperative period management and care dimensioning the risks, on preventing and treating complications.3333 Fernandes EO, Guerra EE, Pitrez FA, Fernandes FM, Rosito GB, Gonzáles HE, et al. Avaliação pré-operatória e cuidados em cirurgia eletiva: recomendações baseadas em evidências. Revista da AMRIGS, Porto Alegre. 2010;54(2):240-58. In other words, a surgeon operates trying to avoid surgical complications during the procedure as much as possible, and among them one can be highlighted among general complications, whose universal example is hemorrhage.3434 Stracieri LD. Cuidados e complicações pós-operatórias. Medicina (Ribeirão Preto). 2008;41(4):465-8. Those statements can justify the results of this study because the medical expertise representing the majority of the results noncomplying with the guidelines was surgery.

As to the association with patients’ characteristics, it was observed that patients with more schooling and those who at some moment had an AMI episode have more chance of using antiplatelet therapy in the preoperative period of non-cardiac surgeries according to the SBC (2013). No studies with this type of association were found in the literature.

However, on this matter, in a research done in the United States, its findings strongly suggest that the level of schooling is able to affect the risk of an individual developing cardiovascular diseases, regardless of any cardiovascular risk factor defined, i.e., patients with less than 12-year schooling ran significantly higher risk of AMI than those with 12-year or more schooling.3535 Qureshi AI, Suri MF, Saad M, Hopkins LN. Educational attainment and risk of stroke and myocardial infarction. Med Sci Monit. 2003;9(11):CR466-73. As much as other authors, we understand that a higher schooling level enables patients to understand better the doctor’s orientations as to managing medicines and their health condition, as much as to have more access to information,3636 Samal D, Greisenegger S, Auff E, Lang W, Lalouschek W. The relation between knowledge about hypertension and education in hospitalized patients with stroke in Vienna. Stroke. 2007;38(4):1304-8. once nowadays patients would rather participate more and more in the decision-making process with their doctors.3737 Skowron KB, Angelos P. Surgical informed consent revisited: time to revise the routine? World J Surg. 2017;41(1):1-4.

As to patients who already had an AMI episode and are in the group where the antiplatelet therapy complies more with the guidelines in the perioperative period, one can understand that surgeons and doctors in charge of this medicine management look for avoiding reinfarction, and so they instruct their patients not to suspend aspirin or clopidogrel in the preoperative period of non-cardiac surgeries, thus abiding by the recommendations in the guidelines and advocated by other authors.1515 Lorga Filho AM, Azmus AD, Soeiro AM, Quadros AS, Avezum Junior A, Marques AC, et al. [Brazilian guidelines on platelet antiaggregants and anticoagulants in cardiology]. Arq Bras Cardiol. 2013;101(3 Suppl 3):1-93.,2424 Oscarsson A, Gupta A, Fredrikson M, Jrhult J, Nystrm M, Pettersson E, et al. To continue or discontinue aspirin in the perioperative period: a randomized, controlled clinical trial. Br J Anaesth. 2010;104(3):305-12.,2525 Ozao-Choy J, Tammaro Y, Fradis M, Weber K, Divino CM. Clopidogrel and bleeding after general surgery procedures. Am Surg. 2008;74(8):721-5.,2727 Burger W, Chemnitius JM, Kneissl GD, Rocker G. Low-dose aspirin for secondary cardiovascular prevention - cardiovascular risks after its perioperative withdrawal versus bleeding risks with its continuation - review and meta-analysis. J Intern Med. 2005;257(5):399-414.,3838 Gerstein NS, Schulman PM, Gerstein WH, Petersen TR, Tawil I. Should more patients continue aspirin therapy perioperatively?: clinical impact of aspirin withdrawal syndrome. Ann Surg. 2012;255(5):811-9.

This study has some limitations once the information obtained about management of antiplatelet therapy was rendered by the very patients, or by their companions, who in some situations said that opinions diverged between surgeon and cardiologist, or between surgeon and anesthetist, for instance, which would lead the very patients, or their companions, to decide which orientations should be followed. Additionally, the answers were written down on the patients’ reports, and physicians did not have the opportunity of confirming them. In addition, the study is limited to assessing simultaneously the two types of revascularization procedures (angioplasty and coronary revascularization) referring to the management of the antiplatelet agents, and it just does not assess the clinical impact of the antiplatelet therapy after the preoperative period. Therefore, we suggest that future studies address this prospective approach in order to size up the occurrence of thrombotic or hemorrhagic events during and after surgery.

Conclusion

General surgeons stand for a group of physicians which follows the least the guidelines for managing antiplatelet agents in perioperative periods of non-cardiac surgeries. Divergences in conducts seem to stress the need of defining internal protocols, to divulge guidelines and continued education to ensure patients’ safety. Additionally, it was concluded that patients with more schooling, or a previous history of AMI, agree more with the cardiology guidelines, i.e., patients who have less schooling should be better accompanied in the management of the medicine therapy, and also to have more access to information about their health condition. However, fear of the possibility of a new infarction in a patient leads physicians no to hesitate to suspend the antiplatelet agent in non-cardiac surgical procedures when they are not neurosurgeries or transurethral resection of the prostate.

  • Sources of Funding
    This study was funded by FAPITEC.
  • Study Association

    This article is part of the thesis of Doctoral submitted by Juliana Maria Dantas Mendonça, from Núcleo de Pós-graduação em Ciências da Saúde da Universidade Federal de Sergipe.
  • Ethics approval and consent to participate
    This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Universidade Federal de Sergipe under the protocol number 33899914.2.0000.5546. All the procedures in this study were in accordance with the 1975 Helsinki Declaration, updated in 2013. Informed consent was obtained from all participants included in the study.

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Publication Dates

  • Publication in this collection
    21 Sept 2018
  • Date of issue
    Oct 2018

History

  • Received
    01 Feb 2018
  • Reviewed
    11 May 2018
  • Accepted
    23 May 2018
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